After the first week of October play, junior goalkeeper Annabel Sweeney earned both Heartland Women’s Soccer Defensive Player of the week and United Soccer Coaches Player of the Week selection within just two days from one another.

Sweeney was able to reap such recognition as she has held a shutout streak to five consecutive matches while also leading the Heartland Conference with a .875 save percentage.

Though it certainly is an accomplishment to earn two honors in the same week, Sweeney says doing her part for the team and her teammates are what really drives her.

“It was great,” Sweeney said. “I like [receiving] them but our goal is to push into the postseason. So, that’s something that I think are just milestones to check off before we get there.”

And Sweeney is right about the team’s progress as they have racked up an impressive 10-1-1 record: topping the Heartland Conference with a first-place ranking.

In reality, this is Sweeney’s first year actually making her presence felt on the field as she did not play much her freshman year and was sidelined with a tear in her ACL her sophomore year.

Sweeney says that it was tough sitting out, last year, but now, she is happy with how far she has come with her recovery and her contribution to the team. She also notes that the team is headed in the right direction as the regular season comes to an end.

“I’ve got high expectations — as a team we do. We hit a little bump on the road recently, we always say it’s #UpHill: there’s obstacles you have to overcome to get to the top,” Sweeney said. “Hopefully, we’ll have that long postseason mentality.”

The road bump that Sweeney is referring to is the recent home loss the team had against Newman as it was the first of the season.  and It soiled what would be a perfect season home record.

13-year head coach Nick Cowell said that he knows the team can pick back up by the start of the postseason.

“We’ve had a lot of success over the years. … I think there’s an expectation that the team is going to fight hard and one way or another find a way to win some soccer games,” Cowell said. “We’ve emerged as a team; that’s very difficult to beat.”

Similarly to Sweeney, Cowell said that receiving awards are nice and all but it’s best if the team stays focused on the task at hand and continues to work cohesively as teammates.

The SEU women’s soccer team is set to travel to Dallas where they will square off against second-ranked Dallas Baptist University in what should be a hard-fought conference battle Thursday, Oct. 25.